Figure 1 The Triumph of Death In this booklet I describe the fates which direct sourcing.. A mixed metaphor is used by me as I couldn’t get past Shakespeare’s Three Witches and their inf
Trang 1Sourcing’s Three Fates
By Ernie Zibert Copyright 2011 Ernie Zibert Smashwords Edition Smashwords Edition, License Notes Thank you for downloading this free ebook Although this is a free book, it remains the copyrighted property of the author, and may not be reproduced, copied and distributed for commercial or non-commercial purposes If you enjoyed this book, please encourage your friends to download their own copy at Smashwords.com, where they can also discover other works by this author Thank you for
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Table of Contents
TINA SAM DAE About the author Other books by this author Contact the author
"Fair is foul, and foul is fair: Hover through the fog and filthy air"
Shakespeare, Macbeth.
Figure 1 The Triumph of Death
In this booklet I describe the fates which direct sourcing (A mixed metaphor is used by me as I couldn’t get past Shakespeare’s Three Witches and their infamous first act line, which unfortunately is
a portent to many sourcing relationships.) The three sourcing fates are TINA, SAM and DAE Each of
them must be fully understood and managed closely for sourcing success
Trang 2The first of the sourcing fates is TINA TINA is an acronym for ‘There Is No Alternative’ TINA
is responsible for ensuring that all firms utilise sourcing in some way, shape or form In other words, every firm sources products or services to some extent This is what determines the shape and boundary of your firm You simply need to look around your workplace to see clear examples of sourced products or services The handset on your desk, the end-user device you are using (PC, laptop, notebook, tablet), your servers, data centres, and even your applications TINA also decides the nature of the sourcing agreement The agreement’s terms and conditions and the accompanying services TINA is an Aries, characterised by lots of energy and creativity This is exactly what is needed to bring out the change of a sourcing initiative Unfortunately, like Shakespeare’s witches, TINA is often beset with chaos Not all the staff and stakeholders know about or agree with the
sourcing model and invariably the performance metrics are not universally aligned with the business needs (Gartner, 2008)
The second of the sourcing fates is SAM SAM is an acronym for ‘Sourcing Account
Management’ SAM is responsible for how you manage your sourcing relationships SAM determines who in your organisation is accountable for what sourcing processes and reciprocally who in the provider’s organisation is accountable for those sourcing processes Moreover, SAM is responsible for articulating the governance framework for the relationship That is, who meets with who and the attendant terms of reference SAM is a Gemini She is characterised by duality A fitting characteristic
as it represents the two primary parties of the sourcing relationship; the customer and the provider SAM displays a communicativeness, dexterity and adaptability This is a mandatory requirement for a healthy sourcing relationship during its lifecycle Unfortunately, like Shakespeare’s witches, SAM is often beset with conflict As observed by Gartner, relationship management roles are often not well defined or architected (Gartner, 2008) Moreover, many sourcing governance models do not adapt, rather they teeter between dysfunction and disorder
The third of the sourcing fates is DAE DAE is an acronym for ‘Dollars Are Everything’ What I
mean by this is that, first and foremost, every sourcing deal must stack up financially This means that
is must be cheaper than if you performed the same transaction internally Furthermore, it must be cheaper once you have factored in the cost of managing and governing the provider My heuristic is that it must be more than 10% or at least your internal rate of return cheaper in the marketplace than if you do it yourself DAE is the eldest of the three sourcing sisters She is a Taurus and is driven by money That is, DAE adheres to the first rule of effective sourcing – Coase’s law Unfortunately, like Shakespeare’s witches, DAE is often beset with darkness The savings expected by sourcing buyers are often not realised (Gartner, 2008) There are other dimensions of sourcing value But be crystal clear, if the dollars don’t add up then the sourcing deal is a stinker Talking to any competent C-level executive about the other dimensions of sourcing value when the dollars stink will simply result in a look of astonishment
So between Fates and witches sourcing success represents a difficult road To avoid,
"Double, double toil and trouble" (Shakespeare, Macbeth) those responsible for the sourcing
relationship must have a clear picture of TINA, SAM and DAE
About the author:
Ernie Zibert is a senior IT sourcing professional and brings eighteen years international management experience across government, communications and media, and finance industries His transferable skills include IT sourcing strategy and governance, and financial, relationship and commercial management of external service providers Annual spend under management includes up to $200M
AUD along with 20% savings
Other titles by Ernie Zibert
Discover other titles by Ernie Zibert at Smashwords.com
The Science of Sourcing Governance
Trang 3What’s the difference between a million and a billion dollar IT sourcing deal?
Ordering IT Services: Would you like CHIPS with that?
Connect with Me Online:
My blog: http://strategicsourcingblog.blogspot.com For more information, contact Ernie Zibert at ernie.zibert@gmail.com
The cover page is The Triumph of Death, or The 3 Fates a Flemish Tapestry (probably Brussels, ca
1510-1520), located in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England